JP2019067449A - Communication terminal device, communication system, program, and method for controlling communication terminal device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a communication terminal device that can easily select a communication system suitable for a control target device to be connected out of a plurality of communication systems and can perform connection setting for it.SOLUTION: A communication terminal device includes: a first communication unit 34 and a second communication unit 35 that have different communication systems from each other; an NFC reading unit 31 that reads I/F information indicating a communication system of a printing device 2, and a MAC address or Bluetooth address specifying the printing device 2; and a transmission destination setting unit 562 that selects the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit 35 on the basis of information read by the NFC reading unit 31, and establishes connection with the printing device 2 by using the selected communication unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication terminal device, a communication system, a program, and a control method of the communication terminal device.

  In recent years, communication technology for realizing communication between devices has greatly progressed, and various devices have come to be equipped with a communication function (for example, see Patent Document 1). NFC (near-field wireless communication) using a contactless tag as described in Patent Document 1 can perform communication without complicated setting. On the other hand, in the conventional communication method having an advanced communication function, it is necessary to make settings for communication such as the other party and the address. For example, in Patent Document 2, a method for supporting setting in view of the difficulty in setting a device name or an apparatus ID number of a communication partner, a wireless address, a password set with the communication partner, or the like. Is disclosed. According to the method described in Patent Document 2, communication parameters are extracted from an image captured by a camera and set in the communication interface.

JP 2012-523727 gazette JP 2004-86492 A

As described above, conventionally, there has been technology for reading information and executing processing based on the read information, but the application range has been limited. Therefore, for example, when setting the communication method of the control target device, the communication method suitable for the control target device to be connected is selected from a large number of communication methods, and the connection setting corresponding to the selected communication method is selected. I had to do it. Therefore, the complexity of the connection work with the control target device has not been sufficiently reduced.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and a communication terminal device capable of easily selecting a communication method suitable for a control target device to be connected from among a large number of communication methods, and setting the connection. It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication system, a program, and a control method of a communication terminal apparatus.

In order to achieve the above object, a communication terminal apparatus according to the present invention reads a plurality of communication units having different communication methods, information indicating a communication method of a control target device, and identification information identifying the control target device. A control unit configured to select one of the communication units based on the information read by the reading unit and to establish a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit. It is characterized by
According to the present invention, it is possible to easily select from the communication methods a communication method suitable for the control target device to be connected, and to perform the connection setting.

In the communication terminal device according to the present invention, the control unit selects the communication unit corresponding to a wireless LAN when the reading unit reads a MAC address as the identification information, and the control target device Establishing a connection with the
According to the present invention, it is possible to connect a control target device including a wireless LAN as a communication method to a communication terminal device.

Further, according to the present invention, in the communication terminal device, the control unit specifies the control target device based on the MAC address read by the reading unit, and establishes communication with the control target device in a wireless LAN. It is characterized by
According to the present invention, it is possible to specify the control target device based on the MAC address read by the reading unit, and establish communication with the specified control target device by the wireless LAN.

In the communication terminal device according to the present invention, the control unit selects the communication unit corresponding to Bluetooth when the reading unit reads a Bluetooth address as the identification information, and the control target device Establishing a connection.
According to the present invention, Bluetooth communication with a device to be controlled becomes possible.

In the communication terminal device according to the present invention, the control unit establishes a connection by pairing with the control target device using the Bluetooth address, and transmits data to the control target device through Bluetooth communication. It is characterized by
According to the present invention, data can be transmitted to a control target device by Bluetooth communication.

Further, in the communication terminal device according to the present invention, the reading unit reads the information indicating the communication scheme and the identification information by near field communication with an NFC tag attached to a housing of the control target device. Alternatively, the information indicating the communication method and the identification information are read based on a two-dimensional code attached to a housing of the control target device.
According to the present invention, the information indicating the communication method and the identification information can be read from the control target device by a simple operation.

In the communication terminal device according to the present invention, the control target device is a printing device.
According to the present invention, it is possible to transmit print data from the communication terminal device to the printing device and cause the printing device to print.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a plurality of control target devices connected to a communication network, and a communication terminal device that causes the control target device selected from the plurality of control target devices to execute processing. The communication terminal apparatus includes a plurality of communication units having different communication methods, information indicating a communication method of the selected control target device, and identification information for specifying the control target device. And a control unit which selects one of the communication units based on the information read by the reading unit and establishes a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit. It is characterized by having.
According to the present invention, it is possible to easily select a communication method suitable for the control target device to be connected from among a large number of communication methods, and perform the connection setting.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a computer of a communication terminal apparatus with a procedure for reading information indicating a communication method of a control target device, identification information for specifying the control target device, and read information And selecting one of a plurality of communication units having different communication methods, and performing a procedure of establishing a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit.
According to the present invention, it is possible to easily select a communication method suitable for the control target device to be connected from among a large number of communication methods, and perform the connection setting.

Further, in order to achieve the above object, the present invention is different in the step of reading information indicating a communication method of a control target device, identification information for specifying the control target device, and different communication methods based on the read information. And selecting any of a plurality of communication units, and establishing a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit.
According to the present invention, it is possible to easily select a communication method suitable for the control target device to be connected from among a large number of communication methods, and perform the connection setting.

It is a system configuration figure of a POS system. FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a first printing apparatus. It is a block diagram of a 2nd printing apparatus. It is a block diagram of a communication portable apparatus. It is a figure which shows the QR code stuck to the printing apparatus. It is a figure which shows an address management table. It is a functional block diagram of the control part of a communication portable device. It is a sequence diagram which shows the preparation procedure of an address management table. It is a flowchart which shows the preparation procedure of an address management table. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of a transmission destination setting process. It is a figure which shows the example of a display displayed on the touch panel of a communication portable apparatus. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the printing process which prints a receipt. It is a flowchart which shows the connection procedure by direct connection mode.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the attached drawings. FIG. 1 shows a system configuration diagram of a POS (Point Of Sale) system 1. The POS system 1 is a so-called mobile POS system that uses the communication terminal 3 as a POS terminal.

The POS system 1 includes a plurality of printing devices 2 as control target devices and a plurality of communication terminal devices 3 for controlling the printing devices 2. The POS system 1 further includes a plurality of access points (wireless LAN access points) 4 that perform communication by wireless LAN (Local Area Network) (for example, Wi-Fi (registered trademark) or the like). The plurality of access points 4 are connected by the in-store LAN 6.
In the present embodiment, there are two types of printing devices 2 of the first printing device 2A and the second printing device 2B. The first printing device 2A is a device that includes a communication unit that communicates by a wireless LAN, and that communicates with the communication terminal device 3 via the access point 4. The second printing apparatus 2B includes a communication unit that performs communication by near field communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), and performs communication with the communication terminal apparatus 3 by near field communication. In the following description, when the first printing device 2A and the second printing device 2B are collectively referred to, the printing device 2 is described.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the first printing device 2A, and FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the second printing device 2B. The printing apparatus 2 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.
First, the configuration of the first printing apparatus 2A will be described with reference to FIG. The first printing device 2A is, for example, a portable mobile printer. The first printing apparatus 2A includes an NFC (Near Field Communication) tag 21A attached to an apparatus case 20 (see FIG. 1), and a first communication unit 22A that communicates with the access point 4 by wireless LAN. The first printing apparatus 2A also includes a printing unit 23 that performs printing, and a print control unit 24A that controls the first communication unit 22A and the printing unit 23.

  The NFC tag 21A includes an antenna, an IC chip, and the like (not shown), and performs wireless communication with the NFC reading unit (reader) 31 of the communication terminal device 3 present in a short distance where communication is possible. NFC is an international standard for wireless communication, and is a low-power wireless communication technology in a short distance of a few tens of centimeters. In the NFC tag 21A, interface (hereinafter abbreviated as I / F) information, a model name, and a MAC address are stored as tag information. The I / F information is information indicating a communication I / F included in the first printing device 2A, that is, a communication method. Since the first printing apparatus 2A is a communication method for performing communication by wireless LAN, the I / F information is information indicating the wireless LAN. The model name is information indicating the model name of the first printing device 2A. The MAC address is identification information for identifying the first printing apparatus 2A, and is a MAC address of a wireless communication device (described later) included in the first communication unit 22A. Tag information stored in the NFC tag 21A can be read by near field communication such as NFC.

  The first communication unit 22A includes, for example, a network interface card (NIC) as a wireless communication device, performs wireless communication by a wireless LAN (for example, Wi-Fi), and connects to the access point 4.

  The printing unit 23 includes a print head (for example, a thermal head), and prints print data on a print medium such as a receipt sheet under the control of the print control unit 24A.

The print control unit 24A receives the print data transmitted from the communication terminal device 3 and controls the print unit 23 to print (issue) the print data on a receipt sheet.
The print control unit 24A also includes a memory 25A. The memory 25A stores the IP (Internet protocol) address of the first printing apparatus 2A and the MAC address of the wireless communication device provided in the first communication unit 22A.

  Next, the configuration of the second printing apparatus 2B will be described with reference to FIG. The second printing device 2B is also a portable mobile printer. The second printing device 2B also includes the NFC tag 21B attached to the device case 20 (see FIG. 1). The second printing apparatus 2B also includes a second communication unit 22B that communicates with the communication terminal 3 by near field communication, a printing unit 23, and a printing control unit 24B.

  The NFC tag 21B also includes an antenna, an IC chip, and the like (not shown), and performs wireless communication with the NFC reading unit (reader) 31 of the communication terminal device 3 existing in a short distance where communication is possible. In the NFC tag 21B, I / F information, a model name, and a Bluetooth address are registered as tag information. The I / F information is information indicating a communication I / F included in the second printing apparatus 2B, that is, a communication method. Since the second printing apparatus 2B includes Bluetooth as a communication method, the I / F information is information indicating Bluetooth. The model name is information indicating the model name of the second printing apparatus 2B. The Bluetooth address is identification information for identifying the second printing apparatus 2B, and is an address of the second communication unit 22B that performs communication by near field communication. Tag information stored in the NFC tag 21B can be read by near field communication such as NFC.

  The second communication unit 22B is a communication unit that performs wireless communication compliant with Bluetooth. The second communication unit 22B performs identification processing (authentication) of a connection partner called common name pairing using a Bluetooth address with another Bluetooth compatible device (the communication terminal device 3 in the present embodiment). Thereafter, the second communication unit 22B performs Bluetooth communication with another Bluetooth compatible device.

  The printing unit 23 prints the print data on a printing medium such as a receipt sheet under the control of the printing control unit 24B, similarly to the printing unit 23 of the first printing device 2A.

  The print control unit 24B receives the print data transmitted from the communication terminal device 3 and controls the print unit 23 to print (issue) the print data on a receipt sheet. The print control unit 24B also includes a memory 25B. The memory 25 </ b> B stores the Bluetooth address necessary for establishing the short distance wireless communication by the second communication unit 22 </ b> B.

  Next, the communication terminal device 3 will be described with reference to FIG. An example of a structure of the communication terminal device 3 is shown in FIG. The communication terminal device 3 is configured of, for example, a tablet PC (Personal Computer). The communication terminal device 3 includes an NFC reading unit 31, a touch panel 32, an imaging camera 33, and a first communication unit (first communication unit) 34 and a second communication unit (second communication unit) 35 having different communication methods. And a control unit 50 that controls them.

  The NFC reading unit 31 is a reader that includes an antenna, an IC chip, and the like (not shown) and reads information of the NFC tags 21A and 21B attached to the housing of the printing apparatus 2 by near field communication. The tag information read by the NFC reading unit 31 is sent to a transmission destination setting unit 562 (see FIG. 7) of the control unit 50 described later.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the touch panel 32 is provided substantially in the entire area of the front surface of the communication terminal device 3, and displays various information under the control of the control unit 50. In addition, the touch panel 32 includes a capacitive or pressure-sensitive sensor (not shown) that detects a touch operation, and the sensor detects a touch operation on the touch panel 32 and receives an input.

  The imaging camera 33 is configured by a camera having an image sensor such as a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) or a charge coupled device (CCD), and captures an image. The imaging camera 33 captures an image of the QR code (registered trademark) 27 attached to the device case 20 of the printing device 2. As shown in FIG. 5, a QR code 27 in which a MAC address is two-dimensionally coded may be attached to the printing apparatus 2 instead of the NFC tags 21A and 21B.

  The first communication unit 34 performs wireless communication with the access point 4 by wireless LAN (for example, Wi-Fi) under the control of the control unit 50 described later. The first communication unit 34 communicates with the first printing apparatus 2A via the access point 4 by wireless LAN.

  The second communication unit 35 is a communication unit that performs wireless communication compliant with Bluetooth. Similarly to the second communication unit 22B, the second communication unit 35 performs pairing with another Bluetooth compatible device (the second printing apparatus 2B in the present embodiment) using a Bluetooth address. Thereafter, the second communication unit 35 performs Bluetooth communication with another Bluetooth compatible device.

  The control unit 50 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 51, a read only memory (ROM) 52, a random access memory (RAM) 53, a non-volatile memory 54, and the like as hardware. The ROM 52 stores control programs such as an OS (Operating System: basic software) 521 and application programs (POS application 522 and print control application 523 described later). As the OS 521, a widely known OS such as iOS (registered trademark), Android (registered trademark), Windows (registered trademark) RT, or Windows (registered trademark) 8 can be adopted. The RAM 53 is used as a work memory of the CPU 51, and stores data used by the CPU 51 for calculation. The functional blocks realized by the CPU 51 executing the control program stored in the ROM 52 will be described with reference to FIG.

  An address management table is stored in the non-volatile memory 54 of the communication terminal device 3. FIG. 6 shows an example of the address management table. In the address management table, the MAC address and the IP address are registered in association with each other. The MAC address is an address of the first communication unit 22A included in each of the first printing apparatuses 2A connected to the access point 4. The IP address is the address of the first printing device 2A corresponding to the MAC address. The method of acquiring these addresses will be described later. Further, in the non-volatile memory 54, the Bluetooth address necessary for establishing the short distance wireless communication by the second communication unit 35 is stored. The non-volatile memory 54 is a storage device for storing data even after the power of the communication terminal device 3 is turned off. For example, a flash memory, an EEPROM, an SD card, a magnetic storage device, etc. can be used.

  Next, functional blocks of the control unit 50 will be described with reference to FIG. The functional blocks are realized by cooperation of hardware and software, such as the CPU 51 of the control unit 50 reads and executes the program stored in the ROM 52. The control unit 50 includes, as functional blocks, an accounting processing unit 55 that performs accounting processing, and a print control unit 56 that performs printing control. The accounting processing unit 55 is realized by the CPU 51 reading out and executing the POS application 522 stored in the ROM 52, and the communication terminal device 3 functions as an accounting processing device. Similarly, in the print control unit 56, when the CPU 51 executes the print control application 523, the communication terminal device 3 functions as a print control device.

  The accounting processing unit 55 executes settlement processing (accounting processing) based on the product information input by the operator such as a store clerk through the touch panel 32. Then, the accounting processing unit 55 generates print data for receipt printing based on the settlement information that is the processing result of the settlement processing. The accounting processing unit 55 passes the generated print data to the print data transmission unit 563.

  The print control unit 56 includes a reading control unit 561, a transmission destination setting unit 562, and a print data transmission unit 563.

  The reading control unit 561 controls the NFC reading unit 31 to read tag information recorded in the NFC tag 21 of the printing device 2. First, the operator who holds the communication terminal device 3 brings the communication terminal device 3 close to the NFC tag 21A (21B) of the printing device 2 for which print data is to be printed. That is, an operation of holding the communication terminal device 3 over the NFC tag 21A (21B) of the printing device 2 is performed. When the distance between the NFC reading unit 31 of the communication terminal device 3 and the NFC tag 21A (21B) approaches the distance that allows near field communication, the reading control unit 561 controls the NFC reading unit 31, and the NFC tag 21A The tag information recorded in (21 B) is read. In addition, the reading control unit 561 inputs a photographed image of the imaging camera 33. The reading control unit 561 reads the tag information by analyzing and decoding the image of the QR code 27 captured by the imaging camera 33. The reading control unit 561 passes the tag information to the transmission destination setting unit 562.

  When the printing device 2 is the first printing device 2A, the NFC reading unit 31 reads the I / F type, the model name, and the MAC address as tag information. When the printing device 2 is the second printing device 2B, the NFC reading unit 31 reads the I / F type, the model name, and the Bluetooth address as tag information. The tag information read by the NFC reading unit 31 is passed to the transmission destination setting unit 562.

The transmission destination setting unit 562 selects the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit 35 based on the information read by the reading control unit 561, and selects a communication unit to be used for communication with the printing apparatus 2. Then, the transmission destination setting unit 562 establishes a connection with the printing apparatus 2.
First, the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines the communication method provided by the printing apparatus 2 based on the tag information read by the NFC reading unit 31. When the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines that the communication system of the printing apparatus 2 is Bluetooth according to the I / F type, the short distance to the printing apparatus 2 is obtained using the Bluetooth address of the printing apparatus 2 acquired by the tag information Establish wireless communication. Specifically, the transmission destination setting unit 562 controls the second communication unit 35 to search for Bluetooth compatible devices present around the device, and performs pairing, which is an authentication procedure, with the device of the Bluetooth address acquired by the tag information. Do.

  When the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines that the communication method of the printing apparatus 2 is the wireless LAN according to the I / F type, the address conversion table stored in the non-volatile memory 54 is referred to as tag information The IP address corresponding to the read MAC address is acquired. The read control unit 561 controls the first communication unit 34 to connect to the access point 4 and sets the acquired IP address as a destination address representing the print data transmission destination.

  The print data transmission unit 563 transmits the print data acquired from the accounting processing unit 55 to the printing device 2 set by the transmission destination setting unit 562. Specifically, when connected to the wireless LAN by the first communication unit 34, the print data is transmitted to the transmission destination (IP address) set by the transmission destination setting unit 562. The print data is transmitted to the printing device 2 via the access point 4. When near field communication with the printing apparatus 2 by the second communication unit 35 is established, the print data is transmitted to the printing apparatus 2 connected by the near field communication.

The procedure of creating the address management table by the transmission destination setting unit 562 will be described with reference to the sequence diagram shown in FIG.
The transmission destination setting unit 562 transmits a request packet for requesting transmission of the IP address and the MAC address at predetermined timing such as timing when the communication terminal device 3 is started, when the print control application 523 is started, and timing when connected to the network. Generate The transmission destination setting unit 562 sets a broadcast address in the destination address of the generated request packet. The transmission destination setting unit 562 controls the first communication unit 34 to connect to the access point 4 and broadcasts the request packet to the in-store LAN 6. FIG. 8 shows the case where the printing apparatuses 2 connected to the in-store LAN 6 are three of the first printing apparatuses 2A-1, 2A-2, and 2A-3. The broadcasted request packets are transmitted to the first printing devices 2A-1, 2A-2, and 2A-3, respectively.

Each of the first printing devices 2A-1, 2A-2 and 2A-3 which has received the request packet uses the MAC address and the IP address of its own according to the request packet as the response packet, and the communication terminal device 3 of the request source of the request packet Reply to For example, in the memory 25A of the print control unit 24A of the first printing device 2A-1, the MAC address and the IP address of the first printing device 2A-1 are stored as device information. When the print control unit 24A receives the request packet through the first communication unit 22A, the print control unit 24A reads the device information from the memory 25A, and generates a response packet including the read device information as data. The print control unit 24A transmits the generated response packet to the communication terminal device 3 that is the transmission source of the request packet via the first communication unit 22A. The processing is performed on the other first printing devices 2A-2 and 2A-3 in the same manner as the first printing device 2A-1.
The MAC address of the device information may be stored in a memory (not shown) of the first communication unit 22A. Further, the IP address may be stored in the registry of the OS provided in the print control unit 24A.

  When the transmission destination setting unit 562 of the communication terminal device 3 receives the response packet from the first printing device 2A-1, 2A-2, and 2A-3, it extracts the MAC address and the IP address from the received response packet. The transmission destination setting unit 562 associates the extracted MAC address with the IP address, and registers the address in the address management table shown in FIG.

  Further, when the MAC address recorded in the NFC tag 21A of the first printing device 2A is read by the NFC reading unit 31, the transmission destination setting unit 562 refers to the address management table and refers to the IP address corresponding to the MAC address. get. The transmission destination setting unit 562 sets the acquired IP address as a destination address for transmitting the print data.

  Next, the processing procedure of the communication terminal device 3 will be described with reference to the flowchart. First, the procedure for creating the address management table shown in FIG. 6 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The process of creating the address management table is realized by the control of the transmission destination setting unit 562 of the control unit 50. The transmission destination setting unit 562 executes the creation process of the address management table at a predetermined timing such as the timing of activation of the communication terminal device 3, the activation of the print control application 523, and the timing of connection to the network.

  The transmission destination setting unit 562 first generates a request packet (step S1). The transmission destination setting unit 562 generates a request packet for requesting transmission of the IP address and the MAC address. After generating the request packet, the transmission destination setting unit 562 sets a broadcast address in the destination address of the generated request packet, and broadcasts it to a terminal connected to the in-store LAN 6 (step S2).

  After broadcasting the request packet, the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines whether a response packet to the request packet has been received (step S3). When receiving the response packet from the printing apparatus 2 connected to the in-store LAN 6, the transmission destination setting unit 562 extracts the MAC address and the IP address contained in the received response packet and registers them in the address management table (step S4) ).

  Next, the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines whether a predetermined time has elapsed from the transmission of the request packet performed in step S2 (step S5). That is, the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines whether the timeout time has elapsed. If the determination is affirmative (step S5 / YES), the transmission destination setting unit 562 ends this process. Also, in the case of a negative determination (step S5 / NO), the transmission destination setting unit 562 returns to step S3 and waits for reception of a response packet (step S3).

  Next, transmission destination setting processing for setting the printing apparatus 2 selected by the operator as a transmission destination of print data will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The transmission destination setting process is performed under the control of the reading control unit 561 of the control unit 50 and the transmission destination setting unit 562.

  When performing the transmission destination setting process, first, the operator brings the communication terminal device 3 closer to the NFC tag 21A (21B) of the selected printing device 2. At this time, the transmission destination setting unit 562 causes the touch panel 32 of the communication terminal device 3 to display a display such as “Please hold the communication terminal device over the NFC tag of the printing device” (see FIG. 11A). The operator of the communication terminal device 3 holds the communication terminal device 3 over the NFC tag 21A (21B) of the selected printing device 2. When the distance between the NFC reading unit 31 of the communication terminal device 3 and the NFC tag 21A (21B) approaches a distance that allows near field communication, the reading control unit 561 controls the NFC reading unit 31 to set the NFC tag Read tag information recorded in 21A (21B). The transmission destination setting unit 562 outputs the read tag information to the control unit 50 (transmission destination setting unit 562).

  When the transmission destination setting unit 562 receives the tag information output from the NFC reading unit 31 (step S11), the communication method of the printing apparatus 2 having read the tag information with reference to the I / F information included in the tag information Determine When the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines that the communication method is Bluetooth based on the I / F information (step S12 / YES), the transmission destination setting unit 562 controls the second communication unit 35 to perform Bluetooth connection processing (step S15). At this time, the transmission destination setting unit 562 causes the touch panel 32 to display the model name of the printing apparatus 2 (second printing apparatus 2B) to be paired, the Bluetooth address, etc. (see FIG. 11B), and the pairing Display a message asking if you are OK. When receiving the input permitting the pairing, the transmission destination setting unit 562 performs pairing with the second printing device 2B that has read the Bluetooth address according to the tag information, and establishes a connection with the second printing device 2B by Bluetooth. (Step S15).

  If the determination in step S12 is negative, the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines whether the communication method is the wireless LAN (step S13). When the transmission destination setting unit 562 determines that the communication method is the wireless LAN based on the I / F information (step S13 / YES), it controls the first communication unit 34 to perform connection processing to the wireless LAN (step S13). S14). The transmission destination setting unit 562 acquires, from the address management table, the IP address of the first printing apparatus 2A that has read the MAC address according to the tag information. Then, the transmission destination setting unit 562 causes the touch panel 32 to display the model name, IP address, and MAC address of the printing device 2 (see FIG. 11C), and the printing device in which the transmission destination of the print data is displayed Display a message asking whether or not to set to 2. When the permission input is accepted by the operation of the touch panel 32 by the operator, the transmission destination setting unit 562 controls the first communication unit 34 to connect to the access point 4 and transmits the print data to the acquired IP address. Set to address.

  Further, when the determination in step S13 is negative, the transmission destination setting unit 562 causes the touch panel 32 to display an error display (step S16). In this case, for example, the transmission destination setting unit 562 “Failed to read tag information. Bring the communication terminal 3 close to the NFC tag 21A (21B) of the printing device 2 in order to read tag information again. "" Is displayed on the touch panel 32.

Next, print processing for issuing a receipt will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. The print processing in the communication terminal device 3 is realized by control by the accounting processing unit 55 and the print data transmission unit 563. Further, this printing process is performed in a state where the print data transmission destination is set by performing the address management table creating process described with reference to FIG. 9 and the transmission destination setting process shown in FIG.
The accounting processing unit 55 executes settlement processing (accounting processing) based on the product information input by the operator such as a store clerk through the touch panel 32. Then, the accounting processing unit 55 generates print data for receipt printing based on the settlement information which is the processing result of the settlement processing (step S21). The accounting processing unit 55 passes the generated print data to the print data transmission unit 563.

  The print data transmission unit 563 transmits the print data passed from the transmission destination setting unit 562 to the printing apparatus 2 (step S22). At this time, if there is a second printing device 2B that has been paired, the print data transmission unit 563 transmits print data to the second printing device 2B that has been paired, under the control of the transmission destination setting unit 562 Do. When the first communication unit 34 is connected to the access point 4 under the control of the transmission destination setting unit 562 and the IP address is set as the destination address under the control of the transmission destination setting unit 563, the set IP Send print data to an address.

  When the printing apparatus 2 receives the print data by wireless LAN communication or near field communication (step S31), the printing apparatus 2 prints (issues) a receipt based on the received print data (step S32).

  Further, the communication terminal device 3 transmits a status request for requesting a print status to the printing device 2 that has transmitted the print data. Upon receiving the status request (step S33), the printing device 2 generates status information indicating the status of the printing process, and transmits the status information to the communication terminal device 3 that transmitted the request (step S34). The status information includes, for example, “normal termination” when printing is normally terminated, “receipt paper out”, “ink out” and the like indicating the cause when printing is not terminated.

  Upon receiving the status information from the printing device 2, the print data transmission unit 563 of the communication terminal device 3 causes the touch panel 32 to display the received status information. When the user of the communication terminal device 3 can not print by referring to the display on the touch panel 32, the cause can be identified.

  In the embodiment described above, the NFC tag 21A (21B) is attached to the device case 20 of the printing apparatus 2, and the information of the attached NFC tag 21A (21B) is read by the NFC reading unit 31. Other than this, the I / F information and the address may be converted into the QR code 27 and attached to the device case 20 of the printing device 2. The communication terminal device 3 captures the QR code 27 with the imaging camera 33, and the reading control unit 561 decodes the image data of the QR code 27 into the original information. The read control unit 561 passes the decrypted I / F information and address information to the transmission destination setting unit 562.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the tag information of the NFC tag 21A (21B) attached to the printing device 2 is read, and the communication unit (the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit matched with the communication method included in the printing device 2) The communication terminal device 3 can be connected to the printing device 2 by selecting 35). Therefore, it is possible to easily select a communication method suitable for the printing apparatus 2 to be connected from among a large number of communication methods, and to perform the connection setting.

  When the MAC address input in step S11 of FIG. 10 is not registered in the address management table, the transmission destination setting unit 562 of the communication terminal device 3 does not register “MAC address in the touch panel 32. You may want to display a display such as Further, the transmission destination setting unit 562 may cause the touch panel 32 to display a display such as “Do you want to connect the first printing device 2A that has read the MAC address to a wireless LAN (access point)”. Furthermore, when the transmission destination setting unit 562 receives an operation input for connecting the corresponding first printing device 2A to the wireless LAN by the touch panel 32, the transmission destination setting unit 562 wirelessly transmits the first printing device 2A according to the procedure shown in FIG. Connect to the access point 4 of the LAN.

A procedure for connecting the first printing apparatus 2A to a wireless LAN network established by the access point 4 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.
In this processing flow, first, the first printing device 2A is made to function as an access point, and a mode (direct connection mode) in which the communication terminal 3 is directly connected to the first printing device 2A as an access point is executed. A procedure for connecting the first printing device 2A to the wireless LAN by connecting the first printing device 2A and the communication terminal device 3 in the direct connection mode with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 13 will be described.

  The operator operates the operation unit (not shown) of the first printing apparatus 2A and the touch panel 32 of the communication terminal 3 to input a predetermined operation (steps S51 and S61), and the direct connection mode is started. Be done.

  When the direct connection mode is started, the first printing device 2A and the communication terminal device 3 each start wireless communication using the default SSID and the security key (steps S52 and S62). In the direct connection mode, the first printing device 2A operates as an access point, that is, a parent device, and the communication terminal device 3 operates as a child device participating in the access point.

When wireless communication with the first printing device 2A is started, the communication terminal device 3 transmits the SSID of the access point 4 and the security key to the first printing device 2A (step S63). When the first printing device 2A receives the SSID and the security key from the communication terminal device 3 (step S53), the first printing device 2A transmits a reception confirmation indicating that the SSID and the security key have been normally received to the communication terminal device 3. The first printing device 2A may further transmit the MAC address and the IP address of the first printing device 2A to the communication terminal device 3 after transmitting the reception confirmation to the communication terminal device 3. By notifying the communication terminal device 3 of the MAC address and the IP address of the first printing device 2A, the communication terminal device 3 can immediately start communication via the first printing device 2A and the access point 4. When the communication terminal 3 receives the MAC address and the IP address transmitted from the first printing device 2A, the communication terminal 3 registers the received MAC address and the IP address in the address management table.
The first printing device 2A that has received the SSID and the security key from the communication terminal device 3 sets the received SSID and security key in the first communication unit 22A (step S54), and restarts (step S55). The restarted first printing apparatus 2A is connected to the access point 4 by wireless communication by the first communication unit 22A (step S56). Further, the communication terminal apparatus 3 sets the SSID and the security key transmitted to the first printing apparatus 2A in the first communication unit 34, and switches the access point to be connected from the first printing apparatus 2A to the access point 4 (step S65). ). The communication terminal apparatus 3 connects to the access point 4 by wireless communication by the first communication unit 34 (step S66). The communication terminal device 3 connected to the access point 4 communicates with the first printing device 2A using the IP address and the MAC address of the first printing device 2A.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, even when the first printing device 2A is not connected to the access point 4, the communication terminal device 3 and the first printing device 2A are directly connected in one-to-one communication terminal The connection setting of the first printing device 2A can be performed by the device 3. Then, the first printing apparatus 2A can be connected to the access point 4 by this connection setting.

In the above description, when the communication terminal device 3 and the first printing device 2A are directly connected, the first printing device 2A transmits its own MAC address and IP address to the communication terminal device 3. Further, the communication terminal device 3 has registered the MAC address and the IP address received from the first printing device 2A in the address management table. Other than this, when the transmission destination setting unit 562 of the communication terminal device 3 is connected to the access point 4, the address management table may be created again. The transmission destination setting unit 562 generates a request packet according to the flowchart shown in FIG. 9, broadcasts it to the terminal connected to the in-store LAN 6, associates the received MAC address with the IP address as a response, sign up. As a result, the MAC address and IP address of the first printing device 2A newly connected to the access point 4 can be registered in the address management table of the communication terminal device 3.
Further, in the above-described flow, the case where the first printing device 2A is made to function as an access point has been described as an example, but the communication terminal device 3 is operated as an access point, that is, a parent device and the first printing device 2A is made a child device It can also be operated.

  As described above, the communication terminal device 3 according to the embodiment to which the present invention is applied includes the first communication unit 34 and the second communication unit 35 having different communication methods, the NFC reading unit 31, and the transmission destination setting unit 562. Have. The NFC reading unit 31 reads I / F information indicating the communication method of the printing apparatus 2 and a Bluetooth address or MAC address specifying the printing apparatus 2. The transmission destination setting unit 562 selects the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit 35 on the basis of the I / F information read by the NFC reading unit 31 and the Bluetooth address or the MAC address. Establish a connection Therefore, it is possible to easily select the communication method included in the printing apparatus 2 to be connected, and perform the connection setting for connecting to the printing apparatus 2.

  In addition, when the MAC address is read by the NFC reading unit 31, the transmission destination setting unit 562 uses the first communication unit 34 corresponding to the wireless LAN in the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit 35 as a printing device. Establish a connection with 2. Therefore, it becomes possible to connect the printing apparatus 2 having a wireless LAN as a communication method to the communication terminal apparatus 3.

The transmission destination setting unit 562 identifies the printing apparatus 2 based on the MAC address, and establishes communication with the identified printing apparatus 2 by wireless LAN. Therefore, the printing apparatus 2 can be identified by the read MAC address, and communication with the identified printing apparatus 2 can be established by the wireless LAN.
Further, when the transmission destination setting unit 562 reads the Bluetooth address by the NFC reading unit 31, the transmission destination setting unit 562 communicates with the printing device 2 by the second communication unit 35 corresponding to Bluetooth among the first communication unit 34 or the second communication unit 35. Establish a connection. Therefore, it becomes possible to connect the printing apparatus 2 provided with Bluetooth as a communication method to the communication terminal apparatus 3.

  The transmission destination setting unit 562 establishes connection by pairing with the printing apparatus 2 using the Bluetooth address, and transmits print data to the printing apparatus 2 by Bluetooth communication. Therefore, print data can be transmitted to the printing apparatus 2 by Bluetooth communication.

The NFC reading unit 31 also performs I / F information indicating the communication method of the printing device 2 by near field communication with the NFC tag 21A (21B) attached to the housing of the printing device 2, and the printing device 2 Read the specified Bluetooth address or MAC address.
In addition, a two-dimensionally coded QR code is attached to the device case 20 of the printing device 2. The reading control unit 561 reads the I / F information and the Bluetooth address or MAC address specifying the printing device 2 by analyzing and decoding the image of the QR code captured by the imaging camera 33. Therefore, the I / F information and the Bluetooth address or MAC address specifying the printing device 2 can be read from the printing device 2 by a simple operation.

  The embodiment described above is a preferred embodiment of the present invention. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, although the configuration example including the printing apparatus 2 as the control target apparatus has been described in the above embodiment, the present invention is not limited to this, and a scanner apparatus that optically reads an image or a display that displays an image It may be configured to include a device or other devices.

  1 POS system 2 printing device (control target device) 2A first printing device (control target device) 2B second printing device (control target device) 3 communication terminal device 4 access point 6. In-store LAN, 21A, 21B: NFC tag, 22A: first communication unit (communication unit), 22B: second communication unit (communication unit), 23: printing unit, 24A, 24B: printing control unit, 25A, 25B: memory, 27: QR code, 31: NFC reading unit, 32: touch panel, 33: imaging camera, 34: first communication unit, 35: second communication unit, 50: control unit, 55: accounting processor, 56 ... print control unit, 521 ... OS, 522 ... POS application, 523 ... print control application, 561 ... reading control unit, 562 ... transmission destination setting unit, 563 ... print data transmission unit.

Claims (10)

Multiple communication units with different communication methods,
A reading unit that reads information indicating a communication method of a control target device, and identification information that specifies the control target device;
A control unit that selects any one of the communication units based on the information read by the reading unit and establishes a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit;
A communication terminal apparatus comprising:   The control unit is characterized in that, when the reading unit reads a MAC address as the identification information, the control unit selects the communication unit compatible with a wireless LAN and establishes a connection with the control target device. The communication terminal device according to claim 1.   The communication terminal apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the control unit identifies the control target device based on the MAC address read by the reading unit, and establishes communication with the control target device in a wireless LAN. .   The control unit is characterized in that, when the reading unit reads the Bluetooth address as the identification information, the control unit selects the communication unit compatible with Bluetooth to establish a connection with the control target device. The communication terminal device according to any one of 1 to 3.   5. The communication terminal apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the control unit establishes connection by pairing with the control target device using the Bluetooth address, and transmits data to the control target device by Bluetooth communication. .   The reading unit reads information indicating the communication scheme and the identification information by near field communication with an NFC tag attached to a housing of the control target device, or attaches the information to the housing of the control target device The communication terminal apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the information indicating the communication method and the identification information are read based on the two-dimensional code.   The communication terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the control target device is a printing device. A plurality of control target devices connected to a communication network;
A communication system comprising: a communication terminal device that causes the control target device selected from the plurality of control target devices to execute processing;
The communication terminal device is
Multiple communication units with different communication methods,
A reading unit that reads information indicating a communication method of the selected control target device, and identification information that specifies the control target device;
A control unit that selects any one of the communication units based on the information read by the reading unit and establishes a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit;
A communication system comprising: In the computer of the communication terminal device,
A procedure for reading information indicating a communication method of a control target device, and identification information for identifying the control target device;
A procedure of selecting any of a plurality of communication units having different communication methods based on the read information and establishing a connection with the control target device using the selected communication unit;
A program to run a program. Reading information indicating a communication method of a control target device, and identification information identifying the control target device;
Selecting one of a plurality of communication units having different communication methods based on the read information, and establishing a connection with the device to be controlled using the selected communication unit;
A control method of a communication terminal apparatus, comprising:

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